MERCHANT FAQ
Sell on Canada's Marketplace for Canadian Brands
1. About Common Goods
What is Common Goods?
Common Goods is Canada's dedicated marketplace for verified Canadian-owned brands. Shoppers can discover and buy from 300+ Canadian businesses in a single unified checkout — no bouncing between sites. We handle the payment processing, customer service, and shipping reimbursement so you can focus on making great products.
We're values-driven by design: over 70% of our merchants are women-owned, and our audience actively filters by criteria like women-owned, Indigenous-owned, sustainable, vegan, and made in Canada.
Why is now a good time to join Common Goods?
Canadian brands are facing a pivotal moment. With ongoing US tariff uncertainty, more than 80% of Canadian small businesses that previously relied on American customers are actively looking for domestic alternatives. At the same time, the Buy Canadian movement has driven a sustained wave of Canadian shoppers seeking to spend their dollars at home — our platform captures that intent directly.
Common Goods exists to make Canadian products the default choice, not a research project. Joining now means getting established in front of a high-intent audience while that tailwind is strongest.
Who shops on Common Goods?
Our audience is made up of Canadian consumers who are actively looking to support Canadian businesses — shoppers who have opted in to a buy-local mindset rather than stumbling onto it. They use our values-based filters (women-owned, sustainable, made in Canada, etc.) to find brands they align with, which means higher purchase intent and stronger brand affinity than a general marketplace.
What categories do you carry?
We welcome physical product brands across these categories:
- Apparel & accessories (women's, men's, gender-neutral, kids & baby)
- Jewellery & bridal
- Home decor, textiles & housewares
- Candles & home fragrance
- Personal care & wellness
- Coffee, tea & confections
- Games, puzzles & toys
- Craft supplies & stationery
- Pet supplies
- Sporting goods & outdoor
- Gifts & gift boxes
We do not currently support: services, software, digital products, courses, food requiring cold-chain shipping, industrial products, or publishers without an e-commerce storefront.
2. Eligibility & Getting Started
What are the eligibility requirements?
To be approved as a Common Goods merchant you must:
- Be a legally registered Canadian business with a physical address in Canada
- Be a majority Canadian-owned and employ a majority of your staff in Canada
- Sell physical products (not services, software, or digital goods)
- Fulfill all Common Goods orders from Canada
- Have an active e-commerce storefront (Shopify, WooCommerce, Squarespace, Etsy, or Amazon FBA)
- Have clear shipping, returns, and warranty/guarantee policies published on your own site
- Have high-quality product photography on your existing storefront
- Have at least $30,000 in annual revenue
Applications that lack clear policies, have low-quality imagery, or do not have an active online store will be declined.
My business is Canadian-owned but my products are manufactured abroad. Do I qualify?
Yes. Eligibility is based on business ownership and registration — your business must be legally registered in Canada and Canadian-owned. Where your products are manufactured does not disqualify you, though we do highlight "made in Canada" as a filter for brands whose products are produced domestically.
I sell on multiple channels — Amazon, Etsy, my own Shopify site. Can I still join?
Absolutely. Common Goods is designed to be an additional sales channel, not a replacement for your existing ones. Many of our merchants sell across multiple platforms. You control your own pricing and inventory, and your Common Goods presence operates independently of your other channels.
What does "verified Canadian-owned" mean?
During onboarding, we review your business registration details to confirm that the business is legally registered in Canada and that ownership is Canadian. We reserve the right to decline or remove listings that misrepresent ownership. The "verified" badge on your brand profile signals to shoppers that we've confirmed your Canadian status — it's a trust signal that our audience actively looks for.
How do I apply?
- Complete the online merchant application at the link below
- Once approved, complete your brand profile (ownership verification, business details, values tags)
- Connect your product catalogue via Shopify Collective (Shopify stores) or via our API (WooCommerce, Squarespace, Etsy, Amazon FBA)
- Your listings go live — we handle the rest
Is there a fee to join?
No. Listings are free. There are no monthly fees, no setup costs, and no storage fees.
Common Goods earns a 20% commission on sales that take place through our unified checkout. This covers payment processing, customer service, marketing, and full shipping reimbursement. There are no additional charges on top of the commission.
3. Fees & Financials
What is the commission structure?
Common Goods charges a flat 20% commission on all sales processed through our platform. This single fee covers:
- Payment processing (we pay it, not you)
- First-line customer service (order inquiries, tracking, returns management)
- Full shipping cost reimbursement on every order
- Inclusion in our marketing, email campaigns, and curated collections
There are no hidden fees, no monthly charges, and no pay-to-rank advertising requirements.
How does Common Goods compare to other marketplaces?
What You Actually Keep on a $100 Product Sale
| Common Goods | Amazon FBA | Etsy (>$10k) | |
| Product price | $100.00 | $100.00 | $100.00 |
| Commission | -$20.00 | -$10.00 | -$6.50 |
| Fulfillment | $0.00 | -$8.00 | $0.00 |
| Storage | *$0.00 | -$3.00 | *$0.00 |
| Payment processing | **$0.00 | -$3.50 | -$3.50 |
| Offsite ads (blended) | $0.00 | $0.00 | -$4.00 |
| Shipping your order out | -$15.00 | -$15.00 | -$15.00 |
| Shipping reimbursement | +$15.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| You take home | $80.00 | $60.80 | $71.30 |
| (80%) | (71%) | (71%) |
* You cover your own storage/overhead (standard cost of doing business)
** Common Goods covers payment processing on all marketplace orders — no deduction from your payout
Etsy offsite ads fee (4–12%) applies when Etsy drives a sale from outside their platform; it is automatic for stores over $10k in annual sales.
When do I get paid?
Commissions are calculated weekly. You receive payment — your product revenue minus the 20% commission — after customer delivery confirmation is processed through either Shopify Collective or our direct API integration, depending on your platform. Payments are issued on a rolling weekly basis; your Shopify Collective supplier or API dashboard shows real-time payout status.
Who handles taxes?
Common Goods collects applicable sales tax from customers at checkout and remits it to you as the merchant of record for your goods. Tax calculations are handled automatically through either Shopify Collective or our direct API integration, depending on your platform.
What happens if a customer files a chargeback?
Common Goods manages the chargeback process on your behalf as part of our customer service scope. For chargebacks that involve fulfillment disputes or product-specific information, we will escalate to you and require your response within 4 business hours. We reserve the right to withhold payment for transactions that are under active fraud investigation or chargeback dispute until resolution.
Do I control my own pricing?
Yes. You set your own prices. Common Goods will never override your set prices and does not require price matching or mandate that your Common Goods pricing differ from your other sales channels.
We recommend keeping your pricing consistent across channels to avoid customer confusion, but this is not a platform requirement.
While we reserve the right to offer store-wide discounts or promotional bundles, your individual products will never be marked down.
Can I run promotions or offer discount codes?
Yes. You can offer promotions and discounts on your Common Goods listings. Reach out to vendorsupport@commongoods.ca to coordinate any platform-wide sale events or to have your brand featured in a themed promotion.
4. How It Works - Operations
Walk me through the order process from start to finish.
- A customer shops on Common Goods and checks out through our unified cart
- You receive an order notification through Shopify Collective (or your integrated dashboard) or API. The order is pushed into your order queue alongside those from your existing sales channels.
- You pick, pack, and ship within your stated fulfillment timeframe
- You upload or sync tracking information
- The customer receives a shipping notification
- Once delivery is confirmed, your payout is processed (minus 20% commission)
- Common Goods reimburses your shipping cost according to your shipping fee settings (set at onboarding)
How does shipping reimbursement work?
We reimburse 100% of your shipping costs on every Common Goods order — standard/economy and expedited. Common Goods presents flat-rate economy shipping to customers at checkout. If you offer expedited or express shipping, those options surface automatically and are also fully reimbursed. You are never out of pocket for shipping on a Common Goods sale. Reimbursement is calculated and added to your payouts through Shopify Collective or Direct API. You set your shipping rates to be reimbursed during onboarding.
What fulfillment policies do I need to have in place?
You must have the following clearly stated in your merchant profile (customers see these before purchase):
- Fulfillment timeframe (e.g., "ships within 2 business days")
- Return policy
- Refund policy
- Warranty or guarantee terms (where applicable)
Keep these current. Outdated or missing policies are grounds for listing suspension.
What if I run out of stock after an order is placed?
This should be prevented by keeping accurate inventory tracking enabled in you e-commerce integration (see Technical section). If a stock discrepancy does occur after an order is placed, contact vendorsupport@commongoods.ca immediately. Repeated inventory failures may result in listing suspension. Products set to "do not track inventory" in your e-commerce host are not eligible for sale on Common Goods.
Can I pause or temporarily deactivate my listings?
Yes. You can pause or deactivate individual listings or your full catalogue at any time through your Shopify Collective or API supplier dashboard. If you need to pause your entire store (e.g., for a vacation or inventory hold), notify vendorsupport@commongoods.ca so we can manage any open orders appropriately.
How do returns and refunds work?
Common Goods approves return requests based on your stated return policy. Once a return is approved and the item is received back by you, you process the refund. We handle all first-line communication with the customer through the returns process. If a customer requests a return outside your standard return window, Common Goods will contact you to determine how to proceed — you are not obligated to accept out-of-policy returns, but we ask for a response within 4 business hours.
What if a customer wants a return that falls outside my stated return policy?
You are not obligated to accept returns outside your published policy. Common Goods will inform the customer of your policy terms. However, where a return is related to a fulfillment error (wrong item shipped, damaged in transit), we will work with you to resolve it and the cost will not fall entirely on you — contact us to discuss on a case-by-case basis.
5. Customer Service
Who handles customer service?
Common Goods manages all first-line customer service so you don't have to monitor an additional inbox day-to-day. We handle:
- Order status inquiries
- Tracking and delivery questions
- Return approvals (based on your policy)
- Parcel tracing and lost shipment investigations
You are only contacted for escalations — situations requiring product-specific expertise, fulfillment disputes, or cases outside our scope to resolve.
What is my escalation responsibility?
Maintain an up-to-date customer service email in your merchant profile. When we escalate a case to you, you must respond within 4 business hours during Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm in your local timezone. Escalations that go unanswered may result in Common Goods issuing a refund and charging back the cost to the merchant.
Keep these current in your merchant profile. Customers see them before purchase.
Do I get access to customer data?
Customer contact information is currently held by Common Goods to maintain unified customer service across the platform. We are building privacy-compliant data sharing tools to give merchants more access to their customer insights. We'll communicate any updates to this policy with 30 days' notice before implementation.
6. Technical Setup
How do I list my products?
The primary integration method is Shopify Collective, available to all Shopify merchants with stores operating in CAD. Non-Shopify merchants (WooCommerce, Squarespace, Etsy, Amazon FBA) are integrated via our direct API. Contact vendorsupport@commongoods.ca after approval to initiate your integration.
→ Shopify Collective supplier setup guide (Shopify Help Centre)
What are the inventory tracking requirements?
This is the most important technical requirement. All products and variants you list on Common Goods must have inventory tracking enabled in your e-commerce store — set to "track this product's inventory." Products or variants set to "Do not track inventory" will not be available for sale on our platform and will not appear in listings.
Before going live, verify every product and every variant in your catalogue to confirm tracking is enabled. Shopify Collective and our direct API sync your inventory automatically in real time once connected.
How do product updates sync?
For Shopify merchants: price changes, product descriptions, images, and inventory levels sync automatically and in real time through Shopify Collective. For non-Shopify merchants: updates sync through our API on a scheduled basis. Manual updates are also available through your merchant dashboard for urgent corrections.
I'm not on Shopify. Can I still participate in unified checkout?
Yes. Non-Shopify merchants (WooCommerce, Squarespace, Etsy, Amazon FBA) can participate in our unified checkout through our direct API integration. Apply now to get into the queue — contact vendorsupport@commongoods.ca after your application is approved and we'll initiate your API setup.
How do I track my sales and payouts?
Shopify merchants access real-time sales data, commission calculations, and payout schedules through their Shopify Collective supplier dashboard. Non-Shopify merchants have access to their merchant dashboard through our portal. Both show order history, payout status, and performance metrics.
Do you provide product photography or content support?
We don't provide photography services. High-quality product imagery on your own storefront is a condition of approval — if your images don't meet the bar, your application will be declined or your listings may be paused.
We do provide listing optimization guidance and guidelines for effective product descriptions. Brands with strong content consistently perform better in search and curated collections.
7. Visibility & Growth
How does Common Goods drive traffic to my products?
Common Goods drives traffic through a combination of:
- Organic SEO — our catalogue and collection pages are optimized to rank for "buy Canadian" and category-specific searches
- Email marketing to our active subscriber base
- Social content across TikTok, Instagram, and other channels
- Curated gift guides and editorial collections on-site
- Seasonal campaigns and promotions
You are never required to pay for placement or advertising to appear in relevant searches on our platform — ranking is based on relevance and product quality, not ad spend.
Will my products be considered for gift boxes or curated collections?
Yes. Common Goods curates gift boxes, seasonal collections, and editorial roundups featuring merchant products. Inclusion is editorial — it's based on product quality, relevance to the theme, and availability. There is no fee to be featured. If your brand has a product that would be a strong fit for an upcoming collection or gift box, you're welcome to pitch it to vendorsupport@commongoods.ca.
Can my products appear in multiple categories?
Yes. During onboarding you can tag your products with applicable categories and values-based filters (women-owned, sustainable, made in Canada, vegan, Indigenous-owned, etc.). Accurate tagging improves discoverability for shoppers using our filters — it's one of the highest-leverage steps you can take at setup.
8. Policies & Legal
Where can I read the full Merchant Terms and Conditions?
Our complete Merchant Terms and Conditions are published separately. By registering as a merchant, you agree to be bound by those Terms. Key provisions are summarized below, but the full Terms govern in all cases.
What are the key terms I should know before applying?
Eligibility: You must be a legally registered Canadian business, 18+, with the legal right to sell all listed products.
Commission & payment: 20% commission on all marketplace sales. Payments are processed weekly after delivery confirmation. We may withhold payment for fraudulent or disputed transactions.
Commission disputes: Any dispute regarding a commission calculation must be raised within 30 days of the transaction.
Fulfillment & service: You are responsible for accurate fulfillment within your stated timeframes, providing tracking information, and responding to escalations within 4 business hours (Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm local time).
Content: You retain ownership of your product images, descriptions, and trademarks. You grant Common Goods a non-exclusive licence to use your content for platform purposes (listings, marketing, collections).
Termination: Either party may terminate with 30 days' written notice. We may suspend or terminate accounts for policy violations, prolonged inactivity, or repeated fulfillment failures.
Changes to terms: We will provide 30 days' notice of any material changes to these Terms via email and platform announcement.
Governing law: Ontario, Canada.
What products are prohibited?
All products must comply with Canadian law and be accurately described. Prohibited listings include: illegal goods, counterfeit products, restricted items, and any product that is materially misrepresented. Common Goods reserves the right to remove any listing at our discretion.
Can I sell products that are also available at large Canadian retailers?
Yes. There is no exclusivity requirement. You can sell through Canadian Tire, Indigo, Simon's, Well.ca, your own DTC site, and Common Goods simultaneously. Common Goods is an additive channel, not an exclusive one.
How do I terminate my merchant account?
You may terminate your participation with 30 days' written notice to val@commongoods.ca. Termination does not relieve you of obligations for transactions that occurred before your termination date. Any earned commissions prior to termination will continue to be paid out per our standard schedule.
9. Support
How do I get help?
Merchant support: vendorsupport@commongoods.ca
For technical Shopify Collective setup questions, Shopify's supplier documentation is the authoritative reference:
→ Shopify Collective Supplier Guide
Already approved? Access your Merchant Centre here:
What onboarding support do you provide?
Once approved, you'll have access to:
- Onboarding documentation and integration guides
- Direct support from our merchant success team for setup questions
- Listing optimization guidelines to help your products perform
- Merchant Centre resources for ongoing reference
I have feedback about the platform. How do I share it?
We actively want merchant input. From your merchant dashboard on our website, navigate to the Suggestion Box to post your feedback. Alternatively, email vendorsupport@commongoods.ca with product feedback, feature requests, or concerns. Merchants are the platform — your feedback directly shapes our roadmap.
Still have questions?
Email vendorsupport@commongoods.ca or visit the general Shopify Collective FAQ for technical setup questions.
Common Goods operates as shared infrastructure for Canadian commerce.
When you participate in Direct Checkout, you're helping build the alternative to pay-to-play marketplaces.